Home Repair Program makes life easier for local family
Before the King County Housing Repair Program, Shawn Price had to carry her son Elijah, who suffers from a rare form of muscular dystrophy, up and down the stairs to her home. “I would take him out of the wheelchair, pick him up and carry him up the stairs,” Price said. “You have to do it so I took muscle relaxers and I would just do it, it was a lot of pain.” Now, thanks to the program, Price was able to install a ramp leading to her front door. “It’s a… Read More
FBI honors probation counselor for work with sexually exploited youth
In late 2013, Deb Stuckman, a Juvenile Probation Counselor with Superior Court, was recognized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for her work to help commercially sexually-exploited youth. Deb received the award “…for your excellent work with the Central Sound Child Exploitation Task Force that has achieved notable success in major crime control efforts. Your close cooperation with officers from other jurisdictions also contributed to the Task Force’s successes on behalf of the public. These operations are complex and sensitive, and the FBI is grateful for your outstanding contributions.” Deb began working… Read More
Featured Job: Contract Specialist II
Application Deadline: Thursday 6/5/14 Salary: $71,905.60 – $91,145.60 Annually Department: Department of Executive Services – Finance and Business Operations Division Description: King County’s Procurement & Contracting Service Section (PCSS) is looking for a detail oriented Contract Specialist. A successful candidate for this position will have knowledge of contract administration, possess positive negotiation and project management skills and have experience in improving operations. Some of the responsibilities for this position include determining and developing a procurement approach, working with client groups to analyze and develop the scope of work, holding public pre-proposal meetings,… Read More
Victim Advocates help abused women escape, start again
Emily Elting, a Domestic Violence Victim Advocate for the King County Prosecutor’s Office, helps abused woman find their way out of domestic violence through the justice system and into new lives. One of those women is Jane Gregory, who was beaten nearly to death by her partner in 2012. Jane got the help she needed from Emily and was able to testify at her abuser’s trial. Watch the KCTV video here. Note: the video contains some graphic images.
Wastemobile makes hazardous waste disposal easy
When the permanent hazardous waste facilities weren’t enough to deal with all of King County’s hazardous waste disposal demands, the Wastemobile was created. “We didn’t know how big the demand was; we needed a better plan of doing it,” said Henry Draper who was the original project manager of the Local Hazardous Management Program’s Household Hazardous Wastemobile. “That was the genesis of the Wastemobile.” Now, celebrating its 25th anniversary, two Wastemobiles serve rural and suburban areas of King County, accepting residential and small business hazardous waste materials. The Wastemobile is dedicated to… Read More
Kudos! Public Health Preparedness gets perfect score in CDC review
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has awarded Public Health’s Preparedness Section a perfect score of 100 in a recent assessment of its ability to receive, stage, store, distribute, and dispense medications during a public health emergency. In 2004, the CDC established the Cities Readiness Initiative (CRI) to increase preparedness for biological disasters and protect the public if there is a public health emergency in the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. A public health emergency could include an anthrax attack, an influenza pandemic, or a natural disaster that affects the health of a… Read More
Responders help King County achieve world’s highest cardiac arrest survival rate
King County’s emergency responders have long been recognized as among the best in the world and that standing was enhanced even further this week when it was revealed that the cardiac arrest survival rate in King County, already the world’s best, has reached an all-time high. Someone who has a cardiac arrest in King County has a greater chance of survival than anyone else in the world, with the survival rate in King County up to 62 percent in 2013, according to the latest analysis by county officials. By comparison, the cardiac survival… Read More
Weddings at Brightwater Stories Go Global
Wastewater Treatment Division recently had great success getting information out about its Brightwater Treatment Plant when a story posted on its Facebook page about weddings at Brightwater went viral. A KIRO-7 story about wedding availability at Brightwater’s Environmental Education and Community Center led to coverage from FOX News, Huffington Post, TIME.com, and newspaper websites galore including the Washington Post, New York Daily News, the UK Daily Mail, the Times of Malta and the Irish Examiner. WTD was even interviewed for A3 Radio’s morning show in Melbourne, Australia! The context was playful but… Read More
Annual Report Highlights Employees’ Work to Help Solve Crimes Using Fingerprints
The King County Regional AFIS Program, or Automated Fingerprint Identification System, just published its 2013 annual report. AFIS is a regional levy-funded program that has been operational since 1986 under the administration of the King County Sheriff’s Office that provides criminal identification services to all cities and incorporated areas of King County. Program employees collect and search the fingerprints of arrested individuals to locate unknown aliases and warrants prior to their release. Staff also recover, process, search, and compare fingerprints from crime scenes. The AFIS Program aids in solving crimes throughout King… Read More
Solid Waste and KCIT making strides in small business contracting
When King County’s Solid Waste Division (SWD) put out a contract to build the new Shoreline Recycling and Transfer Station eight years ago, there wasn’t a specific goal or target for including small businesses in the project. “We paid a contractor $24 million, but we don’t know what went to a small firm,” said Ann McFarlane, a contract specialist for SWD. Today, King County agencies are working to make sure that there are more opportunities for small, disadvantaged, and minority- and women-owned businesses to compete for and obtain County contracts – a… Read More
Employee News 